Vanished Optimism
by Writeit240
Summary: When Clockwork changed the timeline for the better after Dan's defeat, the Observants had quite the objection to it. See Danny's life after Clockwork, to balance Danny's victory, leaves Danny in a universe where his family and friends are still dead.
1. Chapter 1

**(Author's note: This is my first fanfiction ever. I own absolutely nothing in Danny Phantom. Nothing. This is rated Teen for mild language and mildly suggestive scenes, and some creepy but not extreme violence.)**

(One month earlier...)

"Enough of Daniel Fenton!"

The Observants crowded around the massive colosseum style room, all watching and spouting criticisms at Clockwork, the Ghost of Time at the center. Clockwork's purple cape flowed elegantly, shrouding his ever-changing figure. He showed no intimidation or fear, as usual. Instead, he listened to their various outcries, unfazed. Some made inane arguments, others just repeated what they heard with no new substance at all.

"The boy is a glitch in the system!"

"Phantom is trouble for the Human and

Ghost Realm!"

"Clockwork, the boy has limits!

"Of course he does," Clockwork muttered. "I know that better than anyone else."

Clockwork reflected on the past events that led up to this massive confrontation, the events that shouldn't have happened, according to the many one-eyed ghosts in the vicinity. He had given the Fenton boy a second chance at life, a second chance to not become the monstrous Dan, the ghost that the world had feared. Danny had traveled through time to accomplish the task of defeating his future self, much to the rage of the Observants. After all, their primary job, rather, their only job was to make sure the time stream wasn't tampered with.

It was ridiculous, really. The Observants has been the ones to order Clockwork to save the timeline, but being the fickle ghosts that they were, and after having seen just how changed the timeline was, they had begun to anger over the new developments Clockwork had made. So what if Danny now had more friends? So what if now Danny's parents were now well respected in their community? So what if Vlad was forced to leave Amity Park, leaving Danny to his new life?

Now that Danny had been given a new start, they had insisted Clockwork had done wrong.

"Clockwork, giving the boy a new, unreasonably better life has shown that you are supportive of bending our rules for a human."

Clockwork lifted his ghostly head to look at the particular Observant who accused him of being biased.

"The boy needed a second chance, is all," Clockwork replied calmly. "Is a past leading once again to the creation of Dan what you would have wanted to see?"

"If it was part of a clean, fixed timeline, yes." the Observant replied. His eye pierced Clockwork's gaze, conveying his seething hate of broken rules. "We could have stopped him if he went down that path again, permanently. We do what is necessary."

"No. I do what is necessary." Clockwork retorted. "The new timeline is set."

"Your timeline is a mutation!" another, much more emotionally charged Observant accused him from across the room. Clockwork turned to face him, though not moving from his position. "You are tending to a disease!"

Clockwork despised being told his work was faulty. He'd let that Observant, as rationally as he could, know that he could just-

"Maybe a compromise could be reached?" a tentative voice asked from the crowd.

All voices quieted, as the Observants in the room turned to the ghost who had suggested such a thing. Clockwork bit back a smile in amusement. An Observant with rather unbiased views were quite the rarity. Clockwork turned a little to his left, and found the speaker. It was a lone Observant who had been silent the entire time, at least, up until that moment.

"What do you mean?" Clockwork asked the ghost, freeing his smile. "Do you still wish to change the timeline like all the others?"

Clockwork expected the Observant to deny wishing to change his precious work, and was pleased to see that he had been correct in his assumption.

"No, you may keep the new timeline," the Observant answered, surprising the crowd around him. "But it will have to be modified. Daniel Fenton will still be in Amity Park, and resume his life as a fourteen year old."

Clockwork lifted a brow.

"So what do you suggest, then?" the Time Ghost asked, hoping for a clearer answer. "What modifications do you want?"

"Well," the Observant began, "I, like all the other Observants here, am against the boy time traveling again."

Clockwork nodded. It was nothing new to him.

"But," the Observant continued, "The boy gets himself into trouble, and as we saw from the issue he had with the CAT's, he can be quite the irrational character."

Clockwork hummed in agreement. Teenagers were far, far from perfect.

"And because you helped him once, he'll more than likely seek you out again when he eventually gets into trouble, now that he knows what you can do."

"I know he will-"

"I know he will too," the Observant interrupted. "Time Lord or not, it's not that hard to figure out."

Clockwork was taken aback by his bluntness. Since when were Observants...snarky?

"The point is, the boy will come to you for help," the Observant went on. "And he will quite possibly want you to change the timeline again. But we don't want that. You have to show him that time travel is not the acceptable method for fixing the thousand of mistakes he will no doubt make in his lifetime."

"What is your solution?" Clockwork asked. So far, the Observant wasn't actually saying anything he disagreed with. Unlike the others.

"I say keep Daniel Fenton in the new timeline for now, but to show that modifying the future is costly, let his family and friends be dead."

If Clockwork had a heart, it would have skipped a beat. The surrounding Observants let out a collective gasp, some even drawing away from the speaker.

"You want me to give him his life back, with the guarantee that the old timeline's Dan won't exist, but leave those who died in the explosion...still deceased?" Clockwork asked slowly. This was certainly a turn of events.

"Leaving his friends and family dead will show the boy that time travel is, and should always be, a last resort. It will keep him from asking for future unacceptable favors," the Observer explained. "That way, he, and no one else can sway your judgement."

Clockwork was about to open his mouth to speak, but the Observant raised his hand to stop him.

"Do not try to convince me that you aren't at all biased," the Observant said, lowering his hand. "I'm quite sure you have some things we aren't aware of, and whether you deny it or not, I will always have a lingering doubt in my mind."

The Observants around him nodded, and Clockwork stared at them all. Though they weren't wrong about the many secret alterations he had made in the past, and he knew they would eventually be found out, it still came as something jarring. Clockwork pursed his blue lips, then began to speak.

"I agree that Daniel needs to learn that time travel isn't something easily accessible," Clockwork admitted. "But what you suggested was rather...brutal."

"As was Dan."

Clockwork nearly choked at the response he'd received. Who, exactly, was this particular Observant? And who was he to talk to him like this?

"I see." Clockwork mumbled. Then, he raised his voice to a normal level. "Well, you make a compelling argument, at least. But what do you think will happen to Daniel if I carry out your suggestion?"

"He'll learn that time travel isn't-"

"I mean besides that," Clockwork interrupted, disliking repetition. "I meant his state of mind. Don't believe the pain he'll feel could possibly make him one step closer to becoming Dan?"

Clockwork grinned when the other Observants held their hands to their eyes in shock. He expected the particular one he was talking to to retract his earlier statements, and possibly even apologize. But to everyone's surprise, the Observant stood his ground.

"Then we kill him," the Observant stated. "It's nothing out of our reach."

"But aren't you worried about altering the future of Daniel is gone?" Clockwork asked, taken aback by the curt answer. He waved his staff around in circular motions. "Everything will be different. The timeline will be changed drastically."

"It will, but it won't have Dan in it," the Observant pointed out. "Besides, there's no guarantee he'll become Dan. Human personalities are quite fluid."

Clockwork, after processing their conversation, realized the Observant was right. Daniel was the only person in both realms that could cause the destruction of ghosts and humans alike, and on a massive scale. But now that Danny knew that Dan existed, he would hopefully try hard to not let himself become that monster again.

And whoever this particular Observant was, he acted much differently than the others. Clockwork would have to look into that.

"Very well," Clockwork concluded. "You've made sense. I suppose it's necessary, even at-" he glanced at the other Observants- " the possible expense of Daniel's mental health."

"Humans heal."

The Observants nodded and some even clapped their hands, though a few grumbled about doubts. It was no matter. Clockwork controlled the time stream, not them.

And with that, Clockwork vanished.


	2. Chapter 2

**(Part two! Danny's totally a rat in jail here.)**

(One month later...)

Danny sat alone in the jail cell, his legs crossed tightly.

Having spent nearly a month living on the streets after the explosion, he had now become a hardened cynic. And who could blame him? The one friend he though he could rely on in harsher times had ghosted him, so to speak, and left him to the mercy of homeless life.

Yes, the infamous Clockwork.

The most powerful ghost, his most powerful friend who had deserted him for the sake of his oh so PRECIOUS timeline. The traitor, Danny reasoned, couldn't care less about the people he watched over. Clockwork fit the stereotype of a ghost that his deceased parents had always used to promote: cold, unfeeling, selfish.

Though he knew it wasn't true for all ghosts, and especially half ghosts like himself, it still stung that THE most powerful ghost in existence- that he knew of at least- fit the bill. Oh, what Danny wouldn't give to deliver a verbal, and if possible, a physical thrashing upon the cruel Time Lord.

Everyone he valued was gone.

Danny tucked his hands under his arms for warmth, though he still shivered. His thin grey jacket provided barely any warmth to his small body, leaving him to regret ever stealing it. It was winter after all, and the cold spared no one.

Though it was nearly midnight, Danny tried to keep his senses sharp. His eyes darted around, utilising whatever dim light that entered the cell to take in more of his surroundings. His ears were also focused, picking up the snores of inmates several cells away.

After a while, despite his astuteness, he began to tire. Soon, Danny's eyelids began to droop, and stifling a yawn only became so much harder. The light seemed to become dimmer with every slow blink he made, each one threatening to plunge him into sleep. The snores became less and less noticeable, and his mind began to slip in and out of reality. Fighting sleep was his only objective now. He refused to be caught off guard.

Danny had never been to jail, after all. It paid to be cautious.

"Hey kid," a guard called out to him. "You got a visitor."

Danny jolted his head up, shocked that the man had slipped past his radar. He must have partially fallen asleep, he reasoned, and made himself temporarily vulnerable. He pushed his coarse black hair out of his face and stared at the guard, confused.

"I...don't have any relatives...here..." Danny weakly explained. His voice didn't work well due to its lack of use for hours on end. That, and Danny began to worry, it could be the effect of a possible incoming cold.

The guard looked at him, then shrugged.

"Well, someone's here to see you anyway," he responded. "Might even pay bail."

"Oh."

Danny watched the guard leave and shifted his position, bringing his knees to his chin. It seemed odd to him that a stranger would visit, especially since he lacked a family and any other connections. He was nothing but a petty thief at this point, in fact, having used his weakening ghost powers to steal food and clothes. Danny wasn't ashamed of it, however. It was now his survival over everything.

A tall man in a black suit entered the room, activating Danny's ghost sense. The dim lighting from above seemingly gave the man's deep blue eyes a glow. He walked towards Danny's cell and stopped just before the bars, a half grin plastered across his face.

The other halfa.

Danny immediately scooted back to the back wall of the cell, as far away from the bars as possible. He felt wide awake now, stunned by her enemy's presence. His stomach knotted with anxiety, Vlad's presence having shattered any feeling of security he had.

"Calm down," Vlad chuckled, sitting down on the cold floor. "It's not like you're going anywhere."

Danny remained silent.

"So," he continued, his face only a few inches in front of the bars, "I haven't seen you in a while. How is life on the streets?"

Danny narrowed his eyes at him, insulted by his amusement. How dare he make fun of his current situation?

"The streets are fine," Danny retorted, regaining his voice. "I survived."

Vlad tilted his head.

"Even though you did, you look worse for wear," he commented. "Your hair is an absolute mess, and I'm sure you haven't changed out of those clothes in days. Weeks, maybe."

"Well, I'm fine here," Danny stated, frowning at him from behind his knees. "So you can just leave."

Vlad laughed, his voice filling Danny's ears with the sound of joy at Danny's expense.

"So eager to get rid of me, hmm?" he continued. He tapped one of the bars softly with his finger. "You don't actually want to stay behind these, do you?"

"It's safer," Danny muttered.

"Safer?" Vlad asked, intrigued by his answer. "Don't you know what happens to the smaller boys in prison?"

In an instant, Danny leaned forward and shot his fist past the bars, aiming at Vlad's face. Vlad quickly moved to the side and caught it, unfazed. He gave it a harsh squeeze, his hand lighting up with a faint pink hue, then let it go.

Danny retracted his hand quickly and rubbed it with his other one, giving him a sharp glare when the pain went away.

"Oh my, I think I might have scared you," Vlad remarked, smirking. "And you should know better than to fight me. I always win."

Danny scowled.

"Oh, and it's quite interesting how you've ended up here," Vlad purred. "Stealing, wasn't it? Where have your holier-than-thou morals gone? Did they escape with your tactical skills, seeing as how you've been caught too?"

"Did you just come here to insult me?" Danny asked, glaring at him. "Don't you have anything better to do? And for your information, I'm only here because I stole for survival. I need to live somehow."

"Well, look where that's landed you."

Danny felt his words sink in hard and fast, almost as if they were a painful blow. He knew Vlad was right, but the truth coming from his mouth irritated him. Danny blamed the feeling on having experienced his lies before.

"Why are you here?" Danny asked him flatly, breaking the silence. The sting of Vlad's words ebbed away slowly as she spoke.

"To make an offer," Vlad explained, knowing that Danny was upset by his bluntness. He had seen the unconscious reaction in the boy's face. "I know you are homeless. I know your family's gone. I'm here to tell you that I can take you in."

Danny's eyes widened.

"I know you don't like me," Vlad acknowledged. "Despise is a better word, really. But this is one of those times you really need to use your brain, Daniel. No one else knows you. You have no distant relatives that are coming to rescue you. You have no close friends in this state, either. They don't know about how you're...different. Even if you're upset about it, I'm all you have left."

Before Danny could utter a response, Vlad reached his hand through the bars and lifted a finger to his mouth.

"Enemy or not." he added.

Danny slapped his hand away and stared at him, contemplating his message. Why would he want to have anything to do with him? His mother, Vlad's never ending obsession, was gone. The man's motives, sometimes vicious, were always hard to read. Maybe that was what made him such an elusive criminal.

"You've tried to kill me before," Danny brought up.

"Oh, I've never tried to kill you," Vlad denied gently. "Only get you out of the way. Temporarily."

Danny scoffed. Vlad shook his head, disappointed.

"I thought you'd be more intelligent, Daniel." he informed her. "You would choose jail over a home?"

"I told you, this place is safer," Danny insisted. "I get food, water, and a roof over my head. That's all I need for now."

"No it's not." Vlad argued, though trying to keep his voice soft. The last thing he wanted to do was rile the teenager up. "People in jail are dangerous. They don't all have innocent intentions like you. And furthermore, food, water, and shelter are not all you need. Climb higher up Maslow's pyramid, Daniel. You need affection and attention too."

"I don't," Danny huffed. "I'll be fine." Who was Vlad to offer those things? It had to be a trap, Danny reasoned.

"Not in the least." Vlad countered. "Why are we even arguing about this?"

"Because you're a liar," Danny shot back. "You've lied to me before a bunch of times."

"Yes, well, you survived, and we're still here," he said, brushing the boy's angry statements off. "Come now, Daniel. I told you, you haven't got anyone else."

Vlad watched Daniel's expression turn somber, realising he must have started thinking of his deceased family.

"You never had a chance to properly mourn them, did you?" Vlad asked softly. Your survival was at risk much too fast."

Danny shook his head.

"No, but I can't...I can't think of them right now." Danny told him, stumbling over his words. Sadness threatened to well up inside him and spill embarrassing tears. "I just need to focus on living."

"Oh, but you're not living," Vlad insisted. "You're just existing. That's really all anyone can do in a filthy place like this."

"Maybe, but... you're obviously dangerous. I can't go with you."

"I'm only dangerous to the ones I despise, Daniel."

"That could be anyone."

"It's not you."

A guard walked in, unaware of his intrusion on the couple's conversation. His keys jingled on his belt, hitting his thighs with every step. His face was stern, hardened by working with the more difficult inmates in distant cells.

"Five more minutes," he gruffly announced before turning around and leaving. "He ain't got all night. Pay the bail or go."

Vlad watched him leave, then turned back to Danny.

"So, have you made your decision?" Vlad asked, slightly annoyed by the interruption. "Time waits for no one, Daniel."

Oh, if Vlad only knew how heartless time really was.

Danny grimaced, the lack of time to make a good decision stressing him. Vlad had finally made his way into his mind, the manipulative conman that he was. One one hand, Danny felt that Vlad's intentions were dangerous, and that jail would suffice as a shelter. But on the other, he desperately wanted to get away from questionable prisoners, and someone to ease the loneliness he felt. Maybe even to vanquish it altogether.

"Why do you even want me?" Danny asked him, peering directly into dark blue eyes. "I've done nothing but fight and insult you."

"Because no matter how low you think I am, I'm not letting an innocent child get locked up for simply trying to stay alive," Vlad explained. "You love justice, don't you? Consider this a form of mine."

Danny, pressed for time, made his decision. He grabbed Vlad by the collar and pulled his face against the bars harshly.

"Ok," Danny began. "I'm coming with you. But if you hurt me at all, I'm killing you. No mercy."

Vlad smiled, unbothered by the sudden aggression. It wasn't that unexpected from a verbally cornered child, after all.

"We go by my rules," Vlad said, yanking his collar out of her grip. "But yes, I'm not here to harm you."

"Fine. Pay the bail."


End file.
